First saw wine made at age 7, became a Master Gardner and now my favorite plant is Vitis vinifera. Published wine reviewer, teach wine appreciation at the local school district. And at my old age completed some WSET levels just because I love all things wine. I pour wine for various distributors, have worked with chefs pairing wine and food at corporate events and do private home parties too. Between events, I meet with winemakers in various states and countries.

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2009 DREAM WALKING (Chardonnay) by Cultivate Wines

“Great wine
makes wonders and is itself one.” …. Edward Steinberg

Chardonnay used to be a pretty
straightforward wine to make. It still is in France where, depending on where
it is grown, it is known by Chablis or a particular chateau in Burgundy for
example. Vintages certainly affect the wine, but the style of winemaking remains
constant. In the U.S. where tastes can change
the market (remember “Sideways” and Merlot?) Chardonnay has been on a roller
coaster with highs of oak and lows of oak chips and curves of stainless steel
in an attempt to keep up with consumers’ fickle tastes. Some U.S. Chardonnay wines have so much
vanilla and oak and butter, they could substitute for the meal. Others are so steely
it seems the enamel on your teeth will be threatened. I’m hesitant, even today, to spend good money
on an unknown label or without the advice of my knowing retailer.

I don’t know if this condition
of confusion gave birth to the “ABC” (Anything but Chardonnay) Club. That would
be a shame because even card carrying members of the club have to admit
secretly that few wines go better with lobster, certain chicken and other
dishes. Can there be no balance?

I received an inaugural bottle
of “Dream Walking” 2009 Chardonnay

by Cultivate Wines for sampling that
answered that question nicely. “Dream
Walking” is 100% Chardonnay, 50% sourced from Mendocino County, 30% from Monterrey
and the Santa Lucia Highlands in the Central Coast and the 20% balance from
Napa Valley. I've found a few inexpensive
Chardonnays that offered balance in the last few years, and “Dream Walking”
belongs in that group.

In the glass, it exhibits the
typical characteristic of very pale straw. But it’s the nose that begins the
real treat of the senses. While some may
pick up notes of lemon, marzipan and pineapple, I was inhaling a fruit salad of
orange segments with pineapple and kiwi.
The wine is a smell/taste pleasure with a strong temptation to keep
enjoying its perfume and reward the nose.

This wine is a “Flying
Wallenda” of balance: A rich mouthfeel that coats and spreads across the
palette offering pineapple, green apple, melon and toasted almond. And yes, it
offers vanilla, but elegantly and in balance.
This is a wine of reservation; a motet that has sections played
discernibly but without overpowering other sections of the chorus.

I expect such grace in a
classic white Burgundy, and I expect

too that I’ll be paying considerably for
it. But “Dream Walking” tastes above its suggested retail price of $17.99 and
offers “Mizer” value in the balanced finish. Six percent – just six – of the blend is
fermented and aged in 100% new French oak. 36% of the blend is fermented and aged
in neutral French oak. The balance of 58% was fermented and aged in stainless
steel tanks. 42% (the 6 and 36 percent
parts) underwent full malolactic fermentation (the conversion of malic acid to
lactic acid. Think of the taste of tart green apple becoming softer and more
buttery). The end result of all this
effort is a wine that I appreciate for its multi-part harmonies, the sum being
greater than any of its parts.

I enjoyed this wine with a
lasagna made from “no boil” noodles* and butternut squash with a béchamel sauce
and a simple salad of dressed organic tomato, parsley and cucumber. But I see it too as a refresher on a beautiful
day made for picnics, a backyard accompaniment to freshly made cerviche or
spicy Indian vegetable dahl.

I enjoyed the 2009 inaugural
vintage and look forward to tasting the 2010 as there will be 8 months of time
prior to its release for bottle aging which may add even more layering and
depth to the wine.